Unknown costs fuel fear of health plan

HEALTH CARE

President Barack Obama holds a child following remarks on health care, Thursday, July 23, 2009, at Shaker Heights High School in Shaker Heights, Ohio.

President Barack Obama holds a child following remarks on health care, Thursday, July 23, 2009, at Shaker Heights High School in Shaker Heights, Ohio.

Photo: Haraz N. Ghanbari, Associated Press

Photo: Haraz N. Ghanbari, Associated Press

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President Barack Obama holds a child following remarks on health care, Thursday, July 23, 2009, at Shaker Heights High School in Shaker Heights, Ohio.

President Barack Obama holds a child following remarks on health care, Thursday, July 23, 2009, at Shaker Heights High School in Shaker Heights, Ohio.

Photo: Haraz N. Ghanbari, Associated Press

Unknown costs fuel fear of health plan

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Sen. Dianne Feinstein said Thursday she was not persuaded by President Obama's news conference Wednesday on health care, saying she is leery of expanding access to insurance unless costs are controlled.

The California Democrat's comments came as Senate leaders postponed votes on health care legislation until the fall, rejecting Obama's August timetable in an effort to seek a broader compromise.

Feinstein, in an interview Thursday, echoed Blue Dog fears about the potential for health care reform to compound, rather than correct, the unsustainable rise in federal debt.

Future budget deficits are being driven by Medicare and Medicaid entitlements. Legislation under consideration would vastly expand Medicaid rolls and provide more subsidies to lower-income earners to purchase insurance.

"I'm concerned that there not be another entitlement," Feinstein said. "Entitlements are well over 50 percent of every dollar the federal government spends this year and are going straight up. If you add more entitlements, it's a problem."

Obama, meanwhile, went to Ohio Thursday to again make his case that reform is an urgent national priority. His comments, like those at his news conference, were aimed at middle-class Americans and sought to calm their fears about the impact of sweeping health reform legislation he is pushing.

In response to a question about Congress not meeting his timetable for passage of the legislation, Obama said he wants reform enacted this year but added of the delay, "That's OK. I just want people to keep on working."

The president toured the Cleveland Clinic, a place that his administration has cited as an example of efficient health care delivery because it is able to provide first-class care at much lower costs than most other institutions.

While Obama promises that any bill will not increase deficits, Feinstein said subsidies to purchase insurance will become an entitlement.

"Although you'll cut costs initially, once those cuts are made, then things begin to swell again, so how do you prevent that entitlement from increasing?" she asked.

Feinstein said she wants more specifics from the president.

"All the talk is how much we need health care reform, and we all agree we need it," Feinstein said. "The problem is how to do it and how to pay for it. The specifics of that need to get laid out in a crystal-clear, uncomplicated manner. I'm ready for people to come and say, 'Look, here's our plan to cover 46 million uninsured people, and here's how we pay for it: A,B,C,D. That has to happen.' "